Good workplace housekeeping practices ensure employee safety

Many of the dangers at warehouses, factories, and other worksites involve heavy machinery, hazardous chemicals, and electrical wiring. Even if you've been trained properly to deal with these things and wear proper safety products such as work gloves, hard hats, and goggles, a messy work area is cause for concern. Keeping a workplace clean is a valuable safety tip.

A clean floor is the only way to guarantee safety. Trash, clutter, moisture, and debris can interfere with forklift operation, cause ladders to slip, and can cause slips, trips, and falls. Janitors and custodians may be responsible for clean-up, but supervisors should also make sure that everyone is doing his part to keep a workplace clean. Regular housekeeping shifts or rotating cleaning duties should be assigned so workplace floors stay clean.

Nails, splinters, holes, and loose tiles can cause injury and damage equipment. Supervisors should regularly inspect buildings and worksites with a checklist to note anything out of place. Asking workers to report damages and broken fixtures so that maintenance workers can fix them is important to workplace safety.